


Sophomore Slump

by buntime



Category: Mother 2: Gyiyg no Gyakushuu | EarthBound
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-12-02
Updated: 2012-12-02
Packaged: 2017-11-20 03:26:06
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,285
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/580786
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/buntime/pseuds/buntime
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Jeff finally comes home after years of studying with his father at Saturn Valley, and he's grown.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Sophomore Slump

It had been six years since you saw him last. He didn’t keep contact, he never visited. You didn’t even know he was still alive. But the world hadn’t been destroyed, so you had to think that something went right. Maybe he didn’t remember the phone number for Snow Wood, but he remembered that his class— well, it wasn’t his class anymore— was graduating. Unfortunately, he was a bit late for the ceremony. But at least he showed at all. Even some three months later.

Or you thought it was for graduation, anyway. What other reason would Jeff return home? He must have been having such a great time with his father after not seeing him for so long. At least, that’s what Ness said he was doing. One could never be too sure. He came to your humble apartment apparently after already visiting the school (for some reason he thought you might still be there. Lucky for him, Maxwell was there to point him in the right direction). 

You didn’t recognize him at first. Staring down from the second story window to see who had buzzed your bell, you thought maybe some stranger mistakenly pushed the wrong button.

He was taller. And his hair was cut short— probably an inch and a half in length. He traded his thick rimmed glasses for a frame-less pair. And his skin was a few shades darker than you remember.

You went outside to greet him, but just stared blankly through the gate of your apartment complex. Who was this stranger?

“Tony?” The strange man asked.

 _How does he— is that Jeff?_ “Wh- It’s you! Jeff!”

He smiled and put his hands in his pockets, “Yeah, it’s me.”

“You’re _here!_ ”

“I’m here.”

You ran to him. Put your arms around his waist and buried your face in his chest, “You came back…” you never remembered him this tall. You used to be taller than him when he was still a pale, shaky child.

“Sorry it’s been so long,” he said. He hugged you back.

Inside, warming up by the space heater, you asked him about the adventure he went on, and about the research he and his dad did together. He smiled and happily unraveled tales about fighting monsters you wouldn’t even want to go near behind bars. His face grew more haunted as he neared the part about fighting Giygas, and having been a robot for a short time, not knowing if he’d ever be human again. He told you about finally spending time with his dad, inventing, and making nice with the Apple Kid, even though his father seemed to like him more. And then he told you about how one day, Dr. Andonuts was gone. Just gone. Vanished into thin air. And his face grew more haunted than before.

He changed the subject. Asked about you. There wasn’t much to say. You graduated school, certainly. Managed to rent an apartment with Maxwell. Even though you had no job, he was kind enough to take you since your parents wouldn’t.

“That all?” He asked.

“…Yeah.” that was all.

You took him to the mall, because he said he needed to do some shopping. Apparently his “winter” attire was lacking because it only snowed one season out of the year in Eagleland. He still remembered where everything was in Winters; the stores, the restaurants. Nothing had really changed here. And you could see him smiling because of that. 

As he crouched down to look at all the knit hats, you couldn’t help but realize: he’s gotten so much older since you’d seen him last. Of course, you’d known that he was getting older this whole time, but you never knew he’d grow up this much. It was almost scary to you. Jeff Andonuts was eighteen now. But he didn’t look the part. He looked much older. He was growing facial hair now, and had a slight, blond beard. The cap he wore was reminiscent of an old man’s. And his coat was more fashionable than you ever remember him being. And then he stood up. He had about a head and a half on you.

Outside, walking to the near-by restaurant, you held his arm as he lit up a cigarette. You, of course, said nothing. He was eighteen after all, and it was completely legal for him to buy and smoke them, even if they were bad for him. He paid for dinner, and kept spouting nonsense and making jokes in ways he never did before. It was as if he were a totally different person from the fragile, shy little kid who had left Snow Wood in the middle of the night. How did he do so much growing up in just six years?

You looked down at yourself and realized that you hadn’t changed a bit. You’d grown a little taller, but not by much. And your face was as chubby as ever whereas you noticed Jeff had lost quite a bit of weight. You didn’t feel any different from the boy who had worried about his best friend day-in and day-out. And graduation didn’t seem to change you like it had changed Maxwell years before— he became more serious, and seemed to grow up all at once right before your eyes. Soon you had graduated too, and you waited for that growth spurt, which never came. You didn’t transfer into the grown-up world like everyone around you. You were still cute little Tony. And you supposed you’d stay that way forever. You didn’t want to think about that anymore.

Back at the apartment, Maxwell had come home from his job as a teacher’s assistant at Snow Wood. The three of you reminisced about days long passed. And as Jeff removed his gloves, you noticed the scars. They were all over his precious hands. You asked him about them.

“Oh, these?” He said, as if they were nothing, “I don’t remember where these little ones came from— some fight or another. I've got some really gnarly ones on my arm from when I was struck by lightning,” he pushed up his sleeve to reveal an intricate scar that actually looked like a lightning bolt itself, “And,” he said as he lifted the back of his shirt, “I got this one from fighting the Kracken on our way to Scaraba. And this,” he pointed to his other arm, “is from fighting the Evil Mani Mani statue at Moonside.” He took his shirt off to show the rest of the scars. He couldn't remember where most of them came from, but the bigger ones had stories. Jeff was full of stories now. Proudly, he regaled each story as if it happened yesterday. He fought bears, a carbon dogs, and worse, the starmen that had taken you away.

Jeff was a scarred man now. Not only mentally, you learned. Though you don’t know why you thought he’d come home with not a scratch on him. He didn’t look any less handsome for it. 

He asked about what had been happening with you again, but really there was nothing. Nothing happened to you in six years. You never grew up, no matter how old you got. 

Not having anywhere else to go, Maxwell let Jeff stay the night. He was offered the couch, but asked to sleep with you in your room. Of course you only too happily obliged. It’s been so long since you had your roommate back, it was comforting.

He held you close and smiled at you, “Some things never change,” he whispered.

Maybe it was what Jeff needed, though, for something to be the same as it was after being gone for so long.

**Author's Note:**

> Growing up is hard, wow.


End file.
